Bracket Breakdown

NCAA TOURNAMENT - FINAL FOUR

March 22, 2008

Here's a look at the eight second-round games today:

East Regional

*No. 5 Notre Dame (25-7) vs. No. 4 Washington State (25-8), 6:40 p.m.: Notre Dame's Luke Harangody abused George Mason with a double-double (18 points, 14 rebounds), turning some people's upset-special into a 68-50 romp on Thursday. Washington State did the same in its blowout of Winthrop, winning 71-40 after being tied 29-29 at the half. The pressure is on the Cougars' Aron Baynes to keep Harangody under control. The Cougars aren't the most athletic team but do play good defense.

South Regional

*No. 6 Marquette (25-9) vs. No. 3 Stanford (27-7), 6:45 p.m.: Stanford has the beef in big twins Brook and Robin Lopez, but Marquette sees plenty of big bruisers in the Big East. The Cardinal flexed those muscles in a 77-53 first-round rout of Cornell, while Marquette had a slightly tougher challenge in beating Kentucky 74-66. The key for this game will be how well Cardinal point guard Mitch Johnson keeps up with the Warriors' fleet of speedy guards. Tempo will be key.

*No. 5 Michigan State (26-8) vs. No. 4 Pittsburgh (27-9), 9:10 p.m.: Perhaps the best matchup of the day. These are two big, physical teams that can bang and guard. Michigan State got contributions from its deep bench to overwhelm Temple 72-61 on Friday. It'll need a better performance from guard Drew Neitzel, who was 2-for-11 from the field in the first round. Pitt has won six consecutive games, including Thursday's 82-63 first-round blowout of Oral Roberts. The Panthers never have won more than two games in any NCAA Tournament, but their recent play suggests they are a real threat here.

Midwest Regional

*No. 11 Kansas St. (21-11) vs. No. 3 Wisconsin (30-4), 4:20 p.m.: K-State looked fabulous in its 80-67 first-round upset of USC, showing it has more firepower than just talented forwards Michael Beasley and Bill Walker. The Wildcats have the talent for another upset here, but do they have the patience and maturity to win the kind of grind-it-out game Wisconsin likes to play? Bo Ryan's team isn't flashy -- see its workmanlike 71-56 first-round victory against Cal State Fullerton. The boring ol' Badgers just win 30 games every year.

*No. 8 UNLV (27-7) vs. No. 1 Kansas (32-3), 6:50 p.m.: The Runnin' Rebels jumped all over overmatched Kent State 71-58 in the first round, but getting past the Jayhawks, who breezed past Portland State 85-61, figures to be another matter. Don't expect Brandon Rush and Co. to wilt under the lights the way Kent did. KU also should be able to exploit the smaller Rebels in the paint.

West Regional

*No. 7 West Virginia (25-10) vs. No. 2 Duke (28-5), 2:10 p.m.: Was Duke's 71-70 scare against Belmont a sign these Devils are overrated? Or was it just the inevitable scare most Final Four teams must survive somewhere along the way? Gerald Henderson's heroics aside, Duke won't beat West Virginia without a better performance from stars DeMarcus Nelson, limited to two points Thursday, or Greg Paulus, who was 3-for-10 from the field. The Mountaineers, who beat Arizona 75-65, are a better version of Belmont. They don't have a strong inside game but move the ball well and can knock down shots.

*No. 6 Purdue (25-8) vs. No. 3 Xavier (28-6), 4:40 p.m.: Xavier rallied from a double-digit deficit to run past SEC Cinderella Georgia 73-61 on Thursday. The Musketeers did it at the foul line, making 27 of 33 free throws compared to the Bulldogs' 3-of-5. Purdue has proved it can win in any style. The Boilermakers like to slow it down but ran past Baylor 90-79. Purdue has won 15 of its past 18 games and has advanced in 10 consecutive tourney appearances since 1993, but it hasn't reached the Sweet 16 since 2000.

*No. 9 Texas A&M (25-10) vs. No. 1 UCLA (32-3), 9:15 p.m.: The Bruins barely broke a sweat in dispatching No. 16 seed Mississippi Valley State, holding the Delta Devils to the lowest point total in an NCAA Tournament game since 1946, prevailing 70-29. A&M held off BYU 67-62 and should be a tougher challenge. But the Aggies need another hot-shooting day from streaky Josh Carter, who went off for 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting Thursday.